


and the world was gone

by lunarcorvid



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, First Kiss, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions, M/M, Major Character Injury, Mutual Pining, Near Death Experiences, this is so cheesy oh my god
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-21 05:52:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12450954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lunarcorvid/pseuds/lunarcorvid
Summary: Harold thought about what he said when he first met John.Sooner or later both of us will probably wind up dead.He just didn't think it would bethissoon.





	and the world was gone

Harold knew he probably wouldn't be getting back on his feet once he felt the warmth leave his limbs.

He was vaguely aware of the blood beginning to pool around him on the dirty pavement. Harold's memory of how he ended up bleeding out on the ground was already starting to get foggy as his vision began to swim. He definitely got shot, but everything else was a blur.

No, he wasn't ready to die, not yet, there was something he needed to tell John. It was something important, but the words escaped him at the moment. Harold wanted to scream, to cry out, but he couldn't summon the energy. The gunshot wound felt numb by now, along with most of his body. He felt light as air and unbearably heavy at the same time. He just needed to go to sleep.

Then John came into his fading vision, followed by Detective Carter (when did she get here? Was she here the whole time?), and he became slightly more aware, but his body felt so, so tired and heavy. John kneeled down on his left, and Carter on his right. John pushed his hand over the gunshot wound in his abdomen in order to stop him from losing more blood. Carter was probably calling for an ambulance.

Suddenly, Harold remembered what he needed to tell John.

He tried to open his mouth to speak, but all that came out were shallow, raspy breaths. John frowned in concern, eyes wide, and-- were those tears in his eyes?

It took some time for Harold to process what John was saying, but he realized that John was trying to keep Harold awake, saying things like "Don't do this, Harold, please, stay awake, stay with me."

A loud noise - sirens - approached rapidly, and soon Harold felt himself being lifted onto a stretcher and moved into the back of an ambulance.

The last thing he saw before the breathing apparatus was placed onto his face was John, soaked in blood that wasn't his own and his eyes looking more sad and broken than Harold had ever seen.

 

\---

 

The first thing Harold noticed was bright lights above him, making his eyes strain and squint. Then the unmistakable scent of antiseptic filled his senses.

He was in a hospital. Surrounded by curtains and a bunch of medical equipment that happened to be hooked into his body. Being in this position brought back painful memories.

His thoughts were interrupted by Fusco parting the curtain in front of him. Finch sat up as much as he could manage so he could look at him.

"About time you woke up." Fusco teased.

"Hello to you too, Detective Fusco." Finch quipped. "How long have I been out?"

"Four days. We were all worried you wouldn't make it." Fusco said. "You lucked out. Bullet barely missed your vital organs."

Harold instinctively reached for his earpiece, but was dismayed when he found that it wasn't there. "Where's John?"

"Who knows? The guy's hardly spoken to me and Carter since you got shot down." Fusco said, shrugging.

Finch paused for a moment. "May I borrow your phone, Detective?"

Fusco cautiously handed Finch his phone. Finch punched in the number to John's phone and waited. It went to voice mail. Finch dialed the number again. This time, John picked up.

"Lionel, _please,_ I need some time--" John started. His voice was raspy, broken. Harold's chest hurt.

"Mr. Reese, it's me." Finch interrupted.

"Harold?" John said, followed by a relieved sigh. "Jesus, you have no idea how much I missed hearing your voice."

Harold couldn't help but smile. "I could certainly say the same, Mr. Reese."

 

\---

 

After a long couple of weeks in the hospital, Harold was finally discharged. He could walk normally for the most part, but he could still feel where the bullet pierced his flesh every time he moved.

By the time Harold returned to the library, he immediately noticed John's unkempt appearance. Harold wanted to say something, but something in John's eyes stopped the words from coming out.

Soon enough, they returned to some form of normalcy. Numbers came and they were dealt with swiftly. Still, there was a tension between the two men, something that needed to be said.

Finch got to the library early a few days later, and he spent the morning thinking about how to effectively approach the topic without making things worse.

John still seemed to be affected by what happened. Of course, they've been working together for a long time, and a certain attachment is to be expected, but it seemed to run deeper than that. 

Finch's thoughts were interrupted when John entered, carrying two cups of green tea. "Finch." John acknowledged.

"Mr. Reese." Harold said.

A few hours had passed, with virtually none of their usual banter in between numbers. In fact, there wasn't much communication at all. Harold decided that if he was going to say something, it was best to say it now.

"Something's wrong." Harold said.

John stiffened. "What is it? Is it Root?"

"No, I mean between us." Harold said. "We've hardly said a word to each other since I came back."

John leaned back in his chair, but remained silent.

"Does this have something to do with me getting shot?" Harold asked.

More silence from John, who looked off to the side with dread.

"John, please," Harold said, voice growing tender. "Talk to me."

John sighed. "I was worried. About you." he said, voice hardly rising above a whisper. "I thought I was going to lose you."

Finch frowned. "I'm here now, John. I'm fine."

John looked up. "I know that, but I still can't shake the thought of what happened." He admitted. "Couldn't stop thinking about what I could've done, how I could've--"

"It's not your fault I got shot, John." Harold interrupted.

John fell silent.

"There was nothing you could've done. You didn't know what was about to happen, and I don't hold any of this against you." Harold continued. Some of the tension seemed to ease out of John.

John gave a ghost of a smile, but looked off into the distance again, as if he was nervous about something. "There's another thing."

Harold quirked a brow. "And what is that, Mr. Reese?"

"I... This was a lot easier in my head." John said sheepishly, shaking his head at himself. He was genuinely smiling this time, and Harold felt his heart flutter at the sight. He deeply wished he could see that smile more often.

"I've been thinking about the two of us lately." John continued.

Hope flickered in Finch's heart. "Oh?"

"We've been at this job together for a long time now. Hell, we've even saved each other's lives a couple of times." John said. Finch couldn't suppress his smile if he tried. "I think it's safe to say we're close now."

"Indeed, Mr. Reese." Finch said fondly.

"And I think..." John paused. "I think I want this to be more than a working relationship."

Finch didn't even know what to say. He's thought about this for so long that it seemed more of a far off dream than reality.

He couldn't help himself, he's wanted this for so long. Harold leaned forward and suddenly their lips brushed against each other in a sweet, gentle kiss.

John pulled away first. Harold panicked for a moment, thinking he read this all wrong, but then John's hand came up to gently cup Harold's jaw, his thumb stroking gently across his cheek.

John leaned forward this time, capturing Harold's lips in a slower, deeper kiss, filled with so much love and passion that Harold was almost dizzy with it.

"I didn't expect to fall in love with you at the beginning, and I certainly didn't expect that you would return my feelings of affection." Finch confessed a few minutes after they broke apart.

"And look at us now." John said, smiling.

"I don't usually have a habit of forming romantic attachments with my employees." Harold said.

John shrugged. "Well, there's a first time for everything."

Harold smiled. "This... this is something I've wanted for longer than I care to admit."

"Then let's make up for lost time." John said. Harold was entirely in agreement.

That night, they found themselves in John's apartment. It was 1 A.M. by the time they fell asleep in John's bed, Harold securely wrapped in the taller man's arms.

Harold felt warm and safe with John by his side, and judging by the way John smiled against Harold's shoulder, he did too.

**Author's Note:**

> i just love these two so much okay???
> 
> thank you for reading!!!! feedback is always appreciated!!!


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